I think my li’l one is a chef in the making. I call him my sous chef. No surprise there, since he has a mom who writes about food, watches food shows, blogs about food and  cooks when she’s happy, sad or any other time in between. His fav. toy is a gigantic plastic ladle that he loves to wield like a “top chef”. He spends most of his time in the kitchen surrounded by the smells of curry, garlic and Indian seasonings. He needs a close-up view of the veggies and the spices I am using and he loves to touch and feel them. I think he has developed quite a taste for seasonings. For those of you struggling with ways to make green veggies interesting for little mouths, here’s an Indian spin on baby meals. Really easy to make, I promise.

1. Boil or pressure cook one part rice and 3 part red or yellow lentils (available at any grocery store) with a pinch of salt, all veggies of your choice. I throw in 5 veggies – potatoes, carrots, beans, spinach and peas. Gently mash it, if you wish.  
2. In a drop of olive oil, season a pinch of asafoetida (anti-cholesterol) a few cumin or mustard seeds or both and add it to the rice and lentil dish. It’s called “khichdi” in Hindi. Lately my sous chef had started rejecting this meal. But the seasoning did wonders. Now he laps it up. Trust me, those green veggies will go down a lot more easily. It’s complete with protein, carbs, vitamins and is flavorful too.  Try this. You’ll sleep easy.

In my next posting I will be reviewing a line of Indian spices by India’s top celebrity chef, Sanjeev Kapoor. Stay tuned.